


Does There Seem to be a Problem, Officer?

by chaoticbeing



Series: Everything's the Same, except a Rat got in [3]
Category: Baby Driver (2017)
Genre: Gen, before canon, every now and then i get impulses to fill this tag, it never stops the grind never does, there's not a lot of dialogue but are you surprised
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2020-01-16 14:59:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18523900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticbeing/pseuds/chaoticbeing
Summary: Baby is one of the most on-it people in Doc's whole crew. He's been doing this for over a decade, and despite the constant changing crew and gigs, he's gotten used to everything.Everything expected leads to something unexpected.





	Does There Seem to be a Problem, Officer?

    Every gig was the same as the last to Baby. Every song was different than the last, though. The thing that set each job apart was the soundtrack that Baby found himself working with. That was what made it different.

    He had grown comfortably numb with the constant changing crew. Not old, like the gig patterns, and not new, like the gig plays. When he first started working for Doc, and working being used lightly, he panicked with the new additions.

    Now, they all fit the ass-indents on the couch of Doc’s jobs. Baby was used to it.

    As the weeks pushed on, seasons changing, the same settling feeling falling over the city as the leaves did.

    It took a decade of working the gig before something was able to shake Baby up enough that he needed to stumble back.

    When Rat showed up and showed off, Baby swore up and down to himself that nothing was going to be the same. There was a new addition, just like Baby, and Doc was going to squeeze every useful cent out of the man his age.

    For a bit, this theory seemed supported. Rat came to every meeting, settled down, pulled something from a satchel, and spent meetings like a highschool movie student spent their classes. Listening, but not attentive, unlike the people around him. Rat only said his name, a snarky remark once or twice, and went back to his work.

    From what Baby could tell, it involved plenty of writing. Rat always had two pencils on him, except for that time he cursed under his breath and ended up with one of Doc’s pens, and several sheets of work with big, blank spaces.

    He never signed anything to Baby. Baby didn’t mind.

    Things got into a rhythm after a couple gigs. The only times Rat ever addressed Baby was waving hello and signing his name. It felt rude not to, and Joe raised him better, so Baby always waved back.

    Sure, Rat was snarky, but those beats made Baby comfortable for those meetings. If he needed something, he would feel fine signing Rat for some assistance.

    But that never happened.

    Rat didn’t want coffee either, so that made things easier.

    Being able to leave became easier too. 

    Doc stopped needing to see Baby as long as he used to, instead calling Rat back. It was a filtering of people after every meeting.

    First, the crew left.

    Second, Baby went up to Doc and got his burner, plus any information exclusively for him about the next gig.

    Third, Baby left for Rat to be alone.

    What happened in there was a mystery to Baby. He knew that it couldn’t be much, because he’d turn to see Rat skipping after him mere moments after.

    The reason started to come to light as the weeks went on, as the summer heat finally left for golden hours and wind. The guns started being higher quality, there was less guess-work on the gigs, the cars gotten within a day than a couple.

    Rat could get his hands on anything that he wanted to, and Baby found himself with the wind knocked out of him and impressed. Part of him nipped with anxiety, however. He knew how Doc worked, and if Rat was open enough about wanting more work…

    No, Doc wasn’t that stupid. He wouldn’t sponsor any one-man jobs. 

    Sometimes Rat didn’t show up at all. Sometimes Baby felt lonely without his shorter doppelganger sitting on the other side of the back.

    From what Baby remembered from the deal, Rat was just for stealing, right? So if he got everything he needed, he wasn’t required to come to the follow-up meetings. Sometimes Baby was that lucky. Perhaps Rat was more so.

    Things fell into a gentle flow. Several gigs passed, all successful, would Doc set up anything else, and it became the numb Baby had felt for the past decade.

    Rat was becoming friendlier. He not only said hello to Baby, but also goodbye, gave a smile, a real smile. Have a good day, or See ya later, or making a joking comment about what ‘drama’ happened in the meeting.

    That was what separated him from the other members that came and went. Baby wasn’t one to make friends, but he could consider Rat one if he was pushed enough.

    Everything expected leads to anything unexpected.

    After a meeting, after watching everyone filter out, after getting his new burner from Doc and being told that the car being picked up absolutely needs to have spare ammunition in the trunk, Baby’s about to head out-

    Then he feels a hand tug on his jacket sleeve. He turns and lock eyes with Rat, who raises his hands to where Baby can see them.

    Oh, okay, a conversation is going to happen.

    < you-MEET-me outside, parking lot >

    Huh. Not a conversation. 

    Baby furrows his eyebrows, barely visible from his shades, but Rat gets the message. He shrugs, and keeps his snarky smile.

    < my car >

    Baby knew his car, thankfully. It was a 1997 BMW Z3, a soft blue with a soft top, and a custom license plate that Baby only knew about because he saw Doc get frustrated with its existence. 

    It wouldn’t be a stretch to say Baby couldn’t ramble those facts off about the driver.

    < okay > Baby accepts, knowing that nothing weird could happen. That wasn’t that aura Rat gave off.

    Anyone else? Baby wouldn’t go anywhere he was told to with just their order. But as far as Baby knew, Rat was just a kid his age who liked to do writing work in meetings and wear t-shirts in 60°F weather.

    Now it was time to leave his boss and his coworker alone in the room. Baby turned up his music, let it play, and weaved out.

    The elevator used to feel odd alone, but now it felt normal. Now, he was used to it, just like everything else.

    Stepping out, he eyed the blue car and made his way over. It was a good car, it looked nice, and definitely wasn’t a getaway vehicle. It would get caught in moments, and remembered by every cop who even glanced at it.

    He assumes Doc hates it, because it never leaves this garage unless Rat’s coming in or leaving.

    Leaning against it feels wrong. So does putting his hands on it, and so does casually relaxing. Baby finds himself standing straight and not putting his body on it. Again, it’s a nice as hell car,

    Even if Rat doesn’t seem the type to care, Baby is.

    He lets himself get dissolved into his music as he waits for Rat. This time, it was taking a little longer than usual. That threw him off his beat, having him improv and stumble a solution. Various different ideas of what Doc and Rat could be talking about flicked through his mind, earbud to earbud.

    Maybe there was something special going on, or maybe Rat had fucked up last session, or maybe, maybe, maybe, there were so many maybes and only some of them were realistic. They flooded Baby the way piled clothes fall over. Obvious, but soft, and easy enough to ignore.

    In the silence of between songs, the ringing in Baby’s ears is accompanied with the ding of an elevator.

    There he is. Baby looks up and at him, eyebrows rising at the new addition.

    Rat’s pulling a blue and white letterman jacket comfortably around him. He definitely didn’t have that when he went into the meeting, and he didn’t bring his satchel… 

    It fits him perfectly.

    Baby, on instinct, pulls out an earbud as Rat comes closer. When they’re only a couple feet apart, Rat raises his hands and opens his mouth.

    “you wanna go for a drive?” He asks in two tongues at the same time.

    “sure,” Baby says with one.


End file.
